Sports

Sports

You’ve probably seen the graphics using a family budget as an analogy for federal spending. Well, the Washington Post has an interesting take on that. The analogy, as presented by the Heritage Foundation, goes like this: — The median family income in the United States is $52,000 . . . — If they spent money […]

A couple weeks in, I’m finally feeling a bit settled in my new job as The Columbian’s Opinion editor, so it’s time to do a little catching up on the blog. To start with, here are some links to my first three Opinion columns. First, I wanted a bit of a light-hearted way to introduce […]

I once spent time in a cramped dressing room with a 400-pound boxer. In 2003, you see, I drove to Lincoln City, Ore., to watch Tonya Harding in a “boxing” match. You can read about that here. But the most memorable part of the evening involved Butterbean, boxing’s heralded King of the Four Rounders. The […]

Here’s an odd item that appeared in a wire story from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune: MINNEAPOLIS – As a smiling Shabazz Muhammad stood on the Target Center stage Friday clutching his No. “0″ Timberwolves jersey — a number he selected because nobody else in the NBA wears it — the guy who thrives on being the […]

With the NBA Draft on the schedule for tonight, it reminded me of when the Blazers had the No. 1 pick in 2007. I tracked down Bill Walton, a former No. 1 pick, to talk about how the draft had changed over three decades: Originally published in The Columbian on June 27, 2007: Thirty-three years […]

With Father’s Day upon us, I thought it would be appropriate to share what I wrote after my dad died in 2009: This is a column I never wanted to write, but knew that someday I would. Roger Alan Jayne — coach, friend, mentor, role model, and all-around good guy — died Wednesday. He was […]

With my tenure in Sports nearing an end, I figure it’s time for a Greatest Hits tour. Why? Well, why not? I’ll re-read these columns, even if nobody else wants to. Here’s one of my favorite pieces I’ve ever written. It’s from 2004, and it’s about the journey of a local woman who played volleyball […]

Good thing Felix Hernandez received some run support Monday. After last week, I’m guessing he was rethinking that $175 million, seven-year deal with the Mariners. On Wednesday, King Felix allowed four hits, no walks and no earned runs in eight innings while striking out 12, yet ended up with no decision. He left with the […]

Kevin Durant is about to make history. Unless he goes 0 for 5 from the free-throw line in Wednesday’s season finale against Milwaukee (or 0 for 14 from 3-point range), Durant will become the sixth player in history to shoot 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range, and 90 percent from the […]

Interesting work, as usual, from Joe Posnanski as he takes a position-by-position look at players who have been voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame over the years by the writers. How have the standards changed? Which positions receive favoritism? What are the differences between players voted in by writers and those selected by the […]